


Furry X-mas

by ManuHerz79



Category: Lucifer (TV)
Genre: Christmas Fluff, Deckerstar - Freeform, Established Chloe Decker/Lucifer Morningstar, F/M, Fluff, Humor, POV Chloe
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-24
Updated: 2019-12-24
Packaged: 2021-02-26 01:54:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,878
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21935560
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ManuHerz79/pseuds/ManuHerz79
Summary: A fluffy x-mas story about Lucifer's animal issues.
Relationships: Chloe Decker/Lucifer Morningstar
Comments: 22
Kudos: 102





	Furry X-mas

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Kathi2511z](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=Kathi2511z).



> For Kathi, my sunshine. You know, why.  
> This isn't a literary highlight, it's just a simply, furry, fluffy x-mas oneshot.  
> Please, accept my apologies for making any mistakes, this story is published without a proper beta-read, I did the translating all by myself (bloody hell).  
> Merry x-mas, beloved Lucifans!

"Detective, why does this creature keep following us?"

A mute eye roll, was Chloe’s first reaction. "Lucifer, this _creature_ is a cat and I really think," she stopped and waited for the small, coal-black furball, that padded behind them recently, to catch up, "she is homeless." The animal stroked around her feet, meowing noisy and she bent down, to pet it. "She can't be very old, three or four months at most, probably she‘s from a late August - or September litter."

"Indeed? That she is?" Thoughtfully, he put a finger on his chin. "What a useful and astonishing information-… why on earth, should I be somehow interested in the age of this furry subject." A snort escaped his lips and he wrinkled his nose, in disgust.

The Detective narrowed her eyes, shook her head and decided, to simply ignore him. Her well-proved method, to deal with his shenanigans on so many days. "She doesn‘t look healthy, her right eye is almost glued and she is way too thin. I can trace each of her ribs." She lifted the miserable heap and gathered it in her arms. "We must help her." In an attempt, to apply to his supporting side, she held the little cat right under his nose. "Look, how cute she is."

" _Urgh_ , take it off me." Defensively, he took a step back. His eyes had grown wide in horror.

"Lucifer! Come on, now". She clicked her tongue reproachfully. "We have to take care of her." The tiny pet cooed once and started purring. Chloe huddled her close. "I'll take her to the nearest animal shelter. They can check, if she has been chipped. Maybe someone misses her," she patted the black fur carefully, "although, I seriously doubt it."

" _Oh_ , no, Detective. I absolutely object this."

She raised her eyebrows. "This isn’t negotiable, Lucifer."

"But, Detective! This hairy creature surely can find a home for itself. We have an important dinner-reservation, that I intend to keep up and- "

"So what. We’ll be probably a bit late. The food won’t run away, I promise."

" _Au contraire_ , Detective. If I’m not mistaken, one course will consist of _escargot_ and it could indeed happen, that these-"

Her hand flew up, to silence him. "First of all, this poor starved kitten is actually more important than our stomachs and secondly... _ew_! Escargot? Are you serious?" She shivered. "We should find another restaurant anyway... I mean... snails… ", she mumbled.

"Snails? Are you kidding, Detective ?" He buried his hands firmly in his pockets, while bending down accusingly. "You are suggesting another restaurant, are you? Maybe one, where burgers and fries are served around the clock?"

"Why not?" She forged her chin.

" _Why not_?", he repeated incredulously and raised his arms high into the sky, in a very theatrical, desperate gesture. "This woman. I can’t believe it." He snorted again. " _Why not_? Because, there is far better food out there, than this fried pieces of potato and this fairly tasty copy of a proper meat, that’s why", he told the darker getting air around them.

Her expression stayed stoic, as she watched his dramatic outburst. Unconsciously, she started to rock back and forth in a way, as if craddling a baby in her arms . The cat opened her little mouth and yawned so heartily, that her cute little ears met at the back of her head. An adorable pink tongue, was exposed thereby. Chloe was utterly delighted. She petted the tiny, furry chin. Immediately, she was rewarded, with an even louder purr of the kitten and she smiled.

" _Hello_?" A hand waved up and down in front of her face, in a very rude manner. "Devil to Detective?" Two pair of eyes, one a mixture of blue and green and one sporting a bright light green, turned at the same time to the most annoying interrupter of their blissful moment. The latter refused to be impressed by this overwhelming beautiful sight and stared back grimly. "Would you please settle down this four-legged home of insects and unspeakable epidemic plagues, so we are able to continue with our date night, or evening, in that very case?" He raised a brow.

" _Nah_. No chance." Her mouth squeezed into a thin line. The tiny carrier of various diseases, reached out a paw to catch Lucifer's fingers. He quickly pulled it away.

"Detective... _Chloe,_ " obviously, he changed his tactics. "This evening should belong only to the both of us. I planned it perfectly." He lowered his head and brought his face closer to hers. "Celebrating our one-month-love-relationship-status," he purred, almost as skillful, as the kitten in her arms, as he looked deep into her eyes. "This is _the night_ , Love." His lips brushed gently over her cheekbones and then slid back to her ear. "First, a fantastic meal," he kissed her earlobe, "afterwards, wine and a dance." His teeth scraped gently over her neck. Her breath caught. "As an absolutely, extraordinary highlight", he lowered his voice to a sultry tone, "you will finally surrender to my irresistible seduction skills."

Her heartbeat quickened.

Since his return, five weeks had passed. The first time had been somewhat complicated, but they both wanted the same thing, there wasn’t any doubt about it.

However, it took small steps in order to gradually get used to each other and therefore, they hadn’t been, well... _intimate_... at all. First and foremost, to steady the delicate bonds, that they were slowly building-

 _Oh, what the hell_.

What was she actually thinking? The two of them could hardly keep their fingers from each other, once they were alone. Her eyes flickerd up and down on his impressive self and the moment, he registered her shameless ogling, his own light up as well. It was time, really time, to get to know each other in a more biblical sense, to-

A pitiful meow interrupted her drifting thoughts.

She quickly took a step back, away from Lucifer's seductive lips. "I... I... I do want to surrender... _uh_... I mean... I..." she stammered more awkwardly, than she liked. His grin spoke volumes. She should really pull herself together, she hardly was a schoolgirl any longer. "I'll take this kitten to a shelter. There is no way you could convince me otherwise." Her eyes fell to the small, helpless cat, purring against her chest. "She needs us and I refuse to leave her alone." With that, she turned and simply stalked back to the parking lot.

Hurried steps followed her. "Very well, all right then. But, Detective, what if that contaminated-"

She shot him a quick, angry look.

"-this cute, fluffy little rascal abuses the Corvette as a loo. I would never get rid of the smell."

"That won't happen." At least she hoped so. You never knew.

"Your responsibility, Detective". He fished for the car keys. "Should it, by all means, come to an unfortunate incident... well... I would gladly watch you washing my car." He popped his cheek with his tongue and his eyes flashed red. "In a bikini, of course."

She sighed.

*****

"A mall."

"Lucifer, please."

"I just can't believe it, Detective... a… _mall_."

"I am truly sorry, " she said, looking compunctious. "I didn't think it would take so long at the shelter."

"All these formalities, just because of a homeless stray." He shook his head in clear disbelief, as they hurried through the long corridors of the shopping center.

Her stomach gave an audible grumble. "As I told you before, we really should have looked for another fancy restaurant-"

He stopped and grabbed her cold fingers. "Detective, you have to be fed, no further delay will be tolerated. Our reservation expired two hours ago and I can see that this shopping temple accommodates a variety of places, that should be able to curtail this growling in your belly in an instant." He brought her hand to his lips. "In this very case, fast food is a necessity, not an option."

Chloe gifted him a stunning smile and he beamed, in return. "Thank you, Lucifer, I'm glad you don’t mourn your snails." She grinned. "But, it could be possible, that we both seem a little rigged up here." She looked down at herself uncertainly and then at him. He wore his usually three-piece-suit with such a natural grace, he would always fit in everywhere, but her dress was definitely of the sort, that literally screamd cocktail-pary. It wasn’t made for a quick snack in a diner, between shopping bags and stressed out families. Their reservation in this fancy-shmancy restaurant, wich offered a very suspicious slimy menu, had been very early and so, there were a lot of people still on the hunt for christmas presents or other things.

"No matter what you’re wearing, Love, you’ll always stand out amongst any crowd, like a sparkling diamond in the sky," he breathed, in a cheek-blushing manner.

Slightly embarrassed, she removed her hand from his. "Thank you," she answered a little hoarsely and cleared her throat. "We-"

"Would you like to try some tea?" An elderly woman interrupted her out of a sudden, waving a steaming cup in their direction. A small terrier flocked next to her floral skirt and sneaker-clad feet. "I have several exquisite varieties. Herbal ones. All planted by myself. Completely organic. There’s nothing better around the whole town."

Chloe’s eyes lingered on the ethereal looking, billowing dress of the woman and on her flaming red curls, which were hardly tamed by an idiosyncratic patterned hair band. Right behind her, nearly in the middle of the aisle, stood an ordinary table, with several types of teas on it, all packed up in pretty, colored bags. A, clearly hand-written, sign sported the words ' _Madame Mim's exquisite herbal teas_ '. Different little paintings emblazed the billboard. They looked like… elves… or fairies? Witche’s brooms?

The Detective glanced around the corridor and only now, she noticed the countless other tables, in this part of the mall. All of them offered homemade or self-generated products. These seasonal vendors spurted like mushrooms, just before Christmas.

"That’s really kind, thank you, but we don't want to buy anything," Chloe said politely and tried to move around the woman.

"He’s English," declared the persistent vendor and pointed with her cup almost threateningly at Lucifer. The hot liquid nearly spilled over the edge. "They appreciate a good tea!"

The Detective’s mood sank a little further. That wouldn’t end well.

"I beg your pardon?" Lucifer's outraged tone spoke volumes.

"Honey, I know this accent." The woman beamed at him, exposing an impressive tooth gap. "England and tea, _ey_?" She held her precious good right under his nose. "Come on, Handsome. Have a taste, you won't regret it." The little dog at her side barked excitedly.

"I will certainly not." His mouth twisted in disgust. "I refuse to drink something repulsive like this."

"Lucifer," Chloe hissed, awkwardly startled, when the elderly woman visible winced because of his words. "He prefers coffee, he doesn't like tea," she hastily apologized.

The vendor waved her off. " _Crap_! All of the English love their tea." The terrier barked again.

The Detective rolled her eyes. Apparently, this woman was more bulletproof, than she had thought.

"First of all, Darling, I'm _not_ aBritish citizen and secondly, I prefer my drinks either alcoholic or sweet, like honey", Lucifer's eyes flickerd to Chloe, "and with sweet, like honey, I mean - _ouch_!" Her boot had made an unexpected fierce contact with his shin and he fell silent.

" _Ha, ha_... he's always so funny," laughed Chloe, awefully embarrassed, trying to ease the akward situation. 

The woman narrowed her eyes. "Listen, I'm not an idiot. You _are_ English and I don't know why you have to deny that now. I’ve work very hard to earn my money with these teas, so that Titan and I will have a merry Christmas." She glared at Lucifer angrily. Hearing his name, the little terrier barked again and promptly earned a disgusted look from the tall man in front of him. "Arrogant, nasty men like you, in your swanky suits," the vendor took an aggressive step towards him, "don't even know what it's like, to manage day by day withouth knowing, what tomorrow will bring."

The corners of Lucifer's mouth twisted into a grin. "In fact, I could imagine _\- uff_!"

Chloe stepped on his foot. Firmly. 

Titan barked.

"We try your tea. _He_ will try your tea. I'm sure, it tastes excellent," Chloe quickly assured the angry woman and reached for the cup, to offer it to Lucifer. He wrinkled his nose again .

"But, Detective-"

"Drink!"

"Bloody hell," he murmured, but did her the favor. Carefully, he brought the cup up to his lips.

The two women watched his moves intently and Titan barked again.

Lucifer sighed, clearly annoyed. "Would you be so kind to finally silence this filthy excuse of an animal? It’s horrible irritating."

Chloe closed her eyes.

_Why._

"He's not a filthy… you... you… snob!" The woman snatched her cup so hard, that it’s content spilled over her own hand. She obviously simmered in anger and Titan seemed to sense the mood of his owner. His tiny, canin brain spotted the cause of her wrath in a flash. Barking, he snapped at Lucifer's ankle.

" _Bugger_ ," he huffed, jerked reflexively with his foot and kicked the little terrier involuntarily to the side. The dog whined and hid behind his owner, who mutated from one second to another to an avenge goddess.

"Are you nuts?, " the woman shrieked and bent down to pick up her barking companion. "Did the bad man hurt you, Hon?," she sobbed, frantically scanning the dog for any bruises.

"He didn't do it on purpose and Titan wasn't hit that bad, I really don't think he got hurt," Chloe said, raising her arms soothingly. "He's sorry for kicking him, right?" Her chin snapped to Lucifer. "Right?," she requested from him.

"And… exactly _why_ should I be sorry?," asked the idiot next to her, absolutely blank.

"You are a terrible man!" The elderly woman snapped at him furiously. "A defenseless animal... how could you! First, you lie straight into my face and then, you attack my poor Titan. I hope you will be punished for this, you... you... British _fiend_!" Her face had turned to a dark red, out of sheer anger. "Get lost, before I call for security," she shouted.

"But, why…"

"We're so sorry! Really sorry! And we go, immediately. You won’t have to bear with us any longer" Chloe waved both hands apologetically and then, she grabbed Lucifer to move him by force. Luckily, the woman didn’t scream after them, only her furious glances followed them right around the next corner, where the Detective finally stopped in her tracks. She let go of her dumbfounded looking boyfriend.

"Great," she murmured angrily.

"Are you mad with me, Detective? Why on earth-"

"Lucifer!," she interrupted gruffly. "I just don't understand you today. At first, you refuse to help this poor little kitten and then you let yourself be provoked by a dog." Offended, he raised an eyebrow and she snorted. "Fine. This aweful woman did provoke you as well, but still! You shouldn't have kicked Titan like that!" Indignantly, she put her hands on her hips. "Do you even like animals?"

"I... I... well, if you ask me like that..."

"We are the superiors, Lucifer. We have the privilege, to look after defenseless beings, to guard them, to take care of them, to help them! The way we treat our animals is the way we treat ourselves!" Her emotionally outburst left him speechless and all he could do was choking on air, so she continued. "Every living being has a heart, a soul and above all, _feelings!_ How you treated this poor pets today, was simply wrong and I am really annoyed right now."

"Does your ardent harangue mean, that there will not be any se-"

"Don't even say it, I'll warn you!" She raised her index finger threateningly and he fell silent again. She took a calming, deep breath. "Okay. Let’s finally grab something to eat and afterwards you can take me home." Only now she recognized, that they've lingered in front of a table, wich offerd various sorts of nuts and she frowned. " _Oh_ , I almost forgot to by some food for the squirrels, living in the park at Trixie’s school," she murmured, momentarily distracted. "And I really don’t care whether you understand this or not!" she couldn’t resist to add. "She loves these animals, so don’t you dare to make any sort of comment about it!"

Actually, from now on he was holding himself back and it didn’t last long for Chloe to be sorry about the way, she scolded him. Perhaps, it wasn’t necessary to get that angry with him but sometimes… sometimes he was just too...

She sighed loudly.

… too much _Lucifer_.

*****

"Mum," yelled Trixie downstairs, "Lucifer eats up the whole nuts for the squirrels."

"What’s about this filthy attempt to sneak on me, hellspawn?" Followed a very offended voice. "I simply take what I am entitled to. There are enough leftovers for these rabid rodents."

"But, half the bag is already gone. And then they won’t have any food for Christmas!"

"What an unabashed accusation, I 've eaten at most a handful of this delicate snack and your mother bought several packs of it. Besides, there will surely be other misguided souls who think, they have to-"

"Lucifer!" Chloe shouted… waited another second and... "Just grab it from him, monkey! " she continued, to stifle any sort of whining or bickering, from both of them.

After they had arrived back home and the babysitter had left, Chloe went upstairs to change. And to take a much needed, very hot shower. Her nerves were still quite tense, a fact which she entirely blamed on Lucifer's behavior during their ride home. Actually, she had planned to talk to him again this evening, about everything. She wanted to apologize for her harsh words. But the provocative way, he had switched between an obdurate silence and a sullen muttering about the fact, that this old woman would be a witch, if there would be witches at all, had her left riled up. So, she dropped her intensions and swallowed her anger, as he did swallow a whole bag of nuts, while driving.

As if he had wanted to eat up the whole squirrels' food on purpose, she thought grimly.

She threw her pretty dress over the chair, which stood in a corner of her bedroom and then slipped into her previously arranged, cozy bathrobe. Her eyes trailed back to the shiny, silver fabric.

_Shame._

She had really looked forward to this date.

But, this kitten had just messed with their plans and she didn't regret helping the cat, even so a romantic evening had been ruined. She had simply, plain prioritys and saving a life, was one of them. Lucifer couldn't-

"Mooooommyyyyy," her monkey suddenly yelled. The absolute terror in her voice made Chloe whirle around in an instant. She sped down the stairs, while thousand of frightening thoughts shot through her mind. Had her baby been hurt somehow? How could that even be possible? Lucifer was with her, he would never allow-

"Mum!" Trixie dashed towards her, grabbed her hand and quickly dragged her to the couch.

"What… but… are you… what..." Chloe stammered. Her eyes flickerd up and down on her daughter. She looked completely unharmed.

_Thank God._

"Look, Mum!" Trixie told her excited and pointed to one of the oversized sofa cushions, which… out of a sudden… sported a coal-black… _squirrel._

Chloe stopped short.

Looked twice.

A toy?

The squirrel took a visual deep breath and whistled through it’s teeth. 

Okay, definitely real.

The poor, clearly frightened animal, trembled almost violently. His paws were buried in his own, very bushy, tail and his tremendous, strangely familiar, dark brown eyes flickered wildly between her and Trixie.

"Where does this come from? Monkey, have you lured it in?" The Detective put her hands on her hips and turned accusingly to her daughter. "Get it out, on the spot, it's scared and-"

The squirrel dropped its tail, raised its arms, whined loudly and then slapped its paws against its own mouth. With wide eyes, it whimperd again, more cautiously.

Chloe eyed it suspiciously. Very strange behavior... could it possibly be sick?

"Mommy," whispered Trixie in a hoarse voice. "We can’t get rid of it." She clapped her hands and her eyes lit up. "This is Lucifer."

Chloe rolled her eyes. "Monkey, whatever you two came up with-"

"It's true!" Her daughter was utterly excited, while the squirrel reached for his tail again, pulled too hard on it and promptly plopped down on his butt. It made a pitiful sound. "We sat here. I wanted to pick a movie and suddenly, he was choking on a nut. He spat it out," she pointed at the shiny piece on the floor. "Then... then he coughed once and... in a flash... I mean, sadly, there wasn’t any flash, it was just really fast and he could have done it slower… but… he turned into… this" All the air had left her lungs and she waved in the direction of the anmial instead, which now patted up and down on his own body, frantically.

"Monkey," Chloe started.

"Mum," Trixie mocked her in the same voice.

"Okay, fine." The Detective didn’t want to spoil their fun immediately. Who knew where this big dork hid himself, probably listening to every word. She took a step towards the animal and leaned down to it. "Well, well, well - _Lucifer_ ," she purred. "Who owns the prettiest and bushiest tail I've ever seen?"

The squirrel stopped short in his actions and stared back at her, straight into her eyes. Its small mouth twisted slowly to something that looked like a lopsided grin and its tongue...

She frowned.

Did it just plop the inside of his cheek, with its tongue?

Did squirrels actually do that?

A small paw grabbed its own fluffy tail and waved it up and down in front of her. The black animal glanced at her and she could swear, there was a lascivious sparkle in its eyes, as it winked-

Winked?

_No._

Her jaw dropped.

_Holy shit._

"Lu-Lucifer?" she breathed out.

The squirrel stopped grinning in a sudden. His whiskers sank an inch and his eyes grew sad. Slowly it nodded with its cute, furry head.

"Oh, my Go-"

The animal... _Lucifer_... made a threatening hiss.

"-olden crap." Chloe's legs softened. She buckled and fell down on her knees.

Don't panic. 

_Don’t. Panic._

"Mommy, what shall we do with him now? I could build him a nest... or...brush him? That’s so awesome." Her daughter was clearly on fire for her new, cozy friend.

"I... I have no idea." The detective wiped her forehead.

"Daddy is coming soon. I can’t wait to tell him!" Trixie said, as she watched the squirrel baring its incisors and palpating them cautiously.

Chloe visibly winced. "We can't tell him about this, monkey. Promise me, that you won’t say a word." She got back to her feet and grabbed her daughter by her shoulders. "He wouldn't understand and we don't want to upset him, okay?" She gave her a straight look, while she did her best to contain the upcoming panic in her. She needed to keep calm. At least, until the very moment, when she would be alone with this black, hairy Lucifer.

Trixie looked from the squirrel to her mother. "Weeelll... oookay," she replied then, meekly. "But, maybe I should stay here with him, anyway. Pretty, please? "

"No, Honey," the Detective pulled her daughter close and kissed her forehead. "Your Dad was looking forward to tonight. You know he has to work for Christmas."

"Yeah," came it fairly convinced, from her baby.

"But, you know, because of that, there will be… what now?"

"Presents?" added Trixie and her eyes lit up once more.

"Exactly!" Chloe tried to spread enthusiastic vibes and ignored the sight of the squirrel in the background, which was checking its most intimate places, now. "You two will have a fantastic Christmas-Eve-Eve."

"But, what about Lucifer?" Trixie's eyes flew back to the small rodent, who’s inspecting had trailled further down to its feet. Slowly, it popped out each clow, one after the the other.

Chloe swallowed. "I'm sure he will change back any moment. You know him. Probably, he plays us with one of his tricks."

"But, he never told us, that he is able to do _that_ ," said her daughter and the Detective was actually kinda proud about her natural distrust. It wasn’t easy to fool her little monkey.

Wich also meant, that she had to work harder on this matter now.

"Lucifer is able to do many things that he hasn't told us about yet. Probably, because he doesn't want to overwhelm us with all his abilities."

" _Hmm_." Trixie eyed the squirrel intrigued. "Could be be possible."

"Could it, right? And you know how much he likes to brag about something. I bet he'll change back as soon as you get out the door. So he can show you off tomorrow." In the corner of her eye she spotted Lucifer raising a paw in protest. Without batting a single eyelid, she pulled the sofa cushion from under his feet. Squeaking, he tumbled down an fell on his belly.

Trixie nodded in satisfaction. "That would be typical. Okay, if he turnes back, will you film him and send me the clip?" she demanded.

To Chloe’s greatest relief, the ringing of the doorbell provided her from finding an answer to this strange request. Her daughter instantly beamed all over her face and dashed to the entrance, to let her father in the appartement.

"Hi, Chlo," Dan greeted her seconds later, strolling towards the couch, as Trixie ran to her room to gather her things. "Is that... a... squirrel? In the middle of your living room?" He frowned and followed Lucifer’s movements, who climbed the low coffee table in front of the furniture.

"Yes, exactly... _uh_... it raced in by accident… through the open door and we couldn’t catch it so far."

The squirrel had narrowed it's eyes and was now staring directly at Dan, without making any attempt to run off, so her explanation sounded terrible thin, even in her own ears.

"Really _?_ It looks kind of weird. Never seen such a dark one."

"You know, not all gray squirrels are gray." Dear God, couldn't she come up with anything better than that?

"Maybe," huffed her ex-husband. "Do you want me to help re-capture it? Usually, it’s very easy with these, you simply need a string and a nut… do you remember, how I told you about the squirrel fishing sessions in- “

A loud hiss interrupted whatever he was about to tell her and he automatically reached for Chloe's arm, to pull her back, away from the coffee table. Away from the angry spitting Lucifer.

"Wow… could it possibly be rabid?" he stated, worried. He bend down on one knee, very slowly, to avoid to further upset the animal, but to get a closer look on it.

" _Nah_ , I really don't think so. It has been very calm so far," Chloe replied quickly. "I bought a lot of nuts today and I'm sure, I can easily lure it out again."

"Oh, come on, get this nuts, we’ll do it right away." Dan leaned slightly forward, while the squirrel narrowed his eyes further. "Why wait any longer? As soon as it will detect your Christmas tree over there," he pointed to the other side of the room, "and climbs in, you can get rid of it together.”

"It isn’t a real tree. I really don't think it will hide there, why should it?" She frowned. "No, Dan. I'll catch it as soon as you're gone. I mean… it could crawl under your car and... imagine you'd run over it! Trixie would be devastated! " Right. Appealing to his conscience usually helped.

"Are you sure?" he asked, his eyes boring into the ones of the animal which stared back at him intensely. "There is something quite odd about it and I would be more at ease, if we could-" 

He broke off. Slowly, his mouth fell open.

Surprised, Chloe looked back and forth between the two of them and noticed how Lucifer had lifted his right flew, while the tips of his whiskers curled up. His eyes glowed softly.

_Wait, what?_

He wouldn’t, would he? Not in the body of a squirrel…

"Stop it!" she hissed and stepped quickly in front of the coffee table to shield her ex-husband from Lucifers eyes and his spreading _Mojo_.

Dan shook his head in confusion, as the eye contact suddenly broke off again. "What-"

"Daddy, I'm ready!" Trixie dashed towards her battered-looking father, fell around his neck and almost knocked him over.

"Oops... steady, monkey," Dan groaned, but then grinned. He straightened up and tried to look past Chloe. "Are you sure you got _that_ under control?" he asked her, frowning.

"Absolutely. Don't worry," she answered firmly.

"Bye, Mommy." Trixie wrapped her arms around her mother, who returned her hug and gave her another kiss on the forehead. "Bye, Lucifer."

Chloe winced.

"Lucifer?" Dan raised an eyebrow.

" _Ha, ha_... yeah... Trixie has already named it, right, Honey?" Prompting, she patted her daughter's cheek. The child nodded and winked at her mother in a much too conspicuously manner. Thank God, she had her back towards her father.

"Won’t say, that it doesn’t fit," her ex-husband murmured, before walking up to her and pulling her into a tight hug. "Merry Christmas, Chlo. I'll see you on the 26th at Linda and Amenadiel's." He pressed a quick kiss on her cheek. The squirrel hissed again. "If you can't get rid of it," Dan whispered, so Trixie couldn't hear him, "call a vet. It can numb it, okay?"

She nodded and waved after the two of them, as they made their way out. As soon as the door closed behind her ex, she whirled around. To an extremely annoying looking rodent.

"Oh, come on," she said, sitting down on the table next to him and threw him a hopefull glance. "Can you change back again?" Squirrel-Lucifer shook his adorable fluffy head. "Does that mean, you have no idea how that could have happened in the first place?" He curled up his cute nose and wiggled his ear. "Great," she whispered and she couldn’t prevent her voice from sounding a littlebit whining. She bowed her head in resignation. 

He had just returned from hell and now... why couldn’t they just catch a break, for once. Little paws patted her thigh and asked for her attention. Lucifer made a clicking sound, then crawled onto her lap to look at her with big, sad eyes.

"We are in this together and we will find a solution, right?" she asked him softly and stroked his black fur tenderly. He whistled quietly and buried his little furry face in her palm. "Come," she said to him, picked him up and settled him on her shoulder. "I need a sip of water."

She stalked over to her kitchen, in search for a drink and put Lucifer back down on the stove, while she reached for a glass. He chattered promptly.

"What? Are you thirsty too?" Without waiting for an answer, that couldn’t come anyway, she fished for a shallow bowl and poured some water from a bottle, which stood next to the refrigerator, inside. Placing the improvised food cup in front of his paws, she frowned, as he backed away in disgust. "Come on," she lured, but he just stared at her reproachfully. "Really?" He stomped one paw and chattered again. "I am not sure, if you would be able to deal with it." Another stomping. "All right, then." She stretched to the whiskey bottle, that she hid high on a shelf, poured the inappropriate liquid in the sink and replaced it with a sip of high-proof alcohol.

Greedily, Lucifer pounced on the bowl.

 _Yeah_ , of course he would prefer a proper drink.

Hopefully, his new, significantly smaller metabolism, would be able to-

A worrying and utterly loud belch, made his squirrel body tremble. He audible sniffed, belched again and then tumbled backward on suddenly shaky paws, before he tipped on the side. His little mouth fell open and his pink tongue rolled out, like a tiny carpet.

_Oh no!_

Had she just poisoned her boyfriend?

Carefully, she grabbed him by his furry neck and put him back on all fours. His legs immediately buckled away, he sagged softly and then fell silent. Her heart sank. Right to the floor.

_No, no, no!_

She looked around in panic.

She had to... she could… she would… she should…

An absolutely non-squirrelish snore reached her ears and to her greatest relief, she saw his little chest rise and fall with every deep breath he took.

_Thank God!_

Heavily, she propped her arms on the kitchen island and tried to pull herself together.

_Okay._

Step by step, now.

Water.

First for her, then for that furry little drunkard.

Afterwards, a shower. Because - overdue.

And then…

... what then...

Her eyes flew to the drawings on the wall next to Trixie's room. A very special one, which showed a tall bald man with wings, brought the necessary inspiration to her mind.

Amenadiel!

He would know what to do!

At least, she hoped so.

*****

"Thank you for coming over that fast." Chloe ushered her two friends in and hurried to close the door behind them.

In the meantime, she had managed to take her shower and to revitalize a drunk-sleepy Lucifer, by unintentionally moisten his fur with a few drops of water. He had rose up in a flash, spatted at her and now he was sulking in her Christmas tree. Every now and then, she could hear him rustle through the ornaments.

"So, what's up? What is this emergency and why didn't you want to tell me more about it on the phone?" Linda reached for her hand and squeezed it confirmative. "Whatever it is, we will try our best to help you."

Amenadiel, who was standing next to her, nodded confidently. "I absolutely agree. I know my brother. There is nothing, that could surprise-"

Out of a sudden, a big, black squirrel spurted down the Christmas tree, sped over the angel's foot nimble as hell and climbed Chloe’s leg up to her hip, where it clung. Without uttering any word, she plucked the animal from her jeans and put it on her shoulder. Large, dark brown eyes, stared challenging at the two newcomers.

" _Uh_... Chloe," Linda adjusted her glasses, "did you get Trixie a... _pet_?" She looked incredulously at the squirrel, that was starting to play with a strand of Chloe's hair.

The Detective sighed. "No. Actually, as strange as it may seems... but... _crap_ , how can I put this to make it easier… " she lost her thread. How could one tell such unbelieveable news in the most careful way? She was pretty sure, that there was no gentle way to get it over with.

She took a stealing, deep breath. "This is Lucifer."

Linda blinked in confusion. "Who is Lucifer?"

"That one." Chloe shrugged demonstratively with her shoulder, on which she carried the squirrel.

"What one?" Amenadiel asked.

"Well, that one." The Detective glanced to the side and nodded at her hairy boyfriend.

The Therapist shook her head. "You actually mean... this _squirrel_?"

"Yap."

"Noooo." Linda grabbed Amenadiel's upper arm. "That can't be true, can it?"

"Unfortunately, yes."

"No way this is Luci." The tall angel eyed the tiny animal on Chloe's shoulder suspiciously. The squirrel stared back at him. Grimly.

"Believe me, it's him."

"Chloe," Amenadiel grumbled and smiled mildly. "Why on earth, should this pet be Lucifer? It’s true, that we celestials are very powerful, but we can’t shift our shapes simply like that."

"Riiiight... then, _whatever_ he had actually done," she pointed to her shoulder, "it is what it is. Lucifer turned into that squirrel, right before Trixie's very eyes, so- ”

"This is impossible," replied Amenadiel stubbornly.

The squirrel wrinkled his tiny nose and sat back on its hind legs. Then, it lifted his paws in a daring gesture, like it would try to fiddle with nonexistent cufflinks.

"Holy shit, it’s _him_!" Linda blurted and dug her fingers into the biceps of the angel next to her, who inhaled a sharp breath. Whether because of the sudden pain in his upper arm, or about the fact, that his brother carried fur, Chloe couldn’t tell the cause of it.

"Luci?" Carefully, Amenadiel approached the Detective, to get a closer look on the rodent. "Is that _you_?" The squirrel snorted audibly and rolled his eyes in annoyance, before flashing it’s teeth.

"It’s him... but… how can that be even possible?" Linda whispered, stunned .

"I have absolutely no idea, that’s why I was hoping for Amenadiel... Amenadiel?" Chloe frowned as Lucifer's brother started to grin. The little devil on her shoulder, gave a loud growl. Like a dog. She was pretty sure, that a common squirrel couldn’t made such a threatening noise.

"A squirrel. He turned into a _bloody_ squirrel, " chuckled the angel. "Of all animals in this world... I just can't believe it." He giggled histerically and earned himself a violent blow to the ribs from Linda. "But it's true," said Amenadiel. "I mean, come on." Grinning, he pointed at Chloes shoulder. "A. Squirrel. " He burst out laughing.

_Poff._

In a flash, Lucifers very tiny, but still very bright-white wings popped out. He hissed angrily at his brother, slapping Chloe’s face with his feathers. She made a choked sound, but Amenadiel simply laughed even louder.

"Not just a random squirrel. A _flying_ squirrel, " he cackled, tears of pure joy in his eyes.

Lucifer shrieked and Chloe’s ears rang. Her eyes dropped to her shoulder and she noticed his fur changing to a reddish tinge.

 _Oh_ , _no_. That couldn’t be a good sign.

She reached for her squirrel bofriend, but before she could grab him, he swung down from her shoulder to head straight to his brother's bald head, claws first.

" _Urgh,_ " Amenadiel yelled. He staggered back a few steps, trying to pluck his brother away from him. "Lucifer, are you nuts!" he cried, his face contorted with pain. "Back off! Let go of me!"

Lucifer clearly didn’t listen, only scratching even more violent on the sensitive scalp underneath his paws. His wrathfully growl almost managed to drown out the screams of the angel.

Almost.

Linda stepped to Chloe's side. "What do you actually think?" she asked, her eyes never leaving the tall man, now sporting a squirrel on his head, while he tumbled towards the living room.

"I honestly don’t know." The Detective watched Ameandiel’s attempts to get rid of his brother with both hands. "Could it possible be, that he did this to himself?"

"Like he gave himself his devil face?" Thoughtfully, the Therapist tapped her lips. " _Hm_. It could be possible- watch out! " she cried suddenly, but it was already too late. Amenadiel fell over the back of the couch and disappeared. "The mind is much stronger than the body, Chloe. We can do things to ourselves, that are hardly scientifically proven. If this already applies to us humans, how could we possibly imagine, what heavenly creatures are able to?"

"You think, his willpower could be that strong, that he transformed himself into an animal?" The Detective raised an eybrow, as a long angelic arm appeared above the couch, caging a spitting squirrel in his hand. "As sort of a punishment?"

"Punishment? Chloe, what had exactly happened, that he might subconsciously believe, he deserves such a punishment?" Linda asked and winced, as the squirrel bared it’s teeth to chomp into the fingers, which trapped it.

Chloe's next words were almost lost in the following, heart-shattering cry of pain. "We did have two encounters pertaining animals, today, almost one following after the other. And I have to admit, in both cases, Lucifer didn’t behave very… well, _kind_."

"Did you tell him?" Frowning, the Therapist turned to her friend. "Accuse him?" She ignored the suddenly airborn squirrel, which performed something like a loop high above the couch, before it turned and whizzed back down again. His fur seemed to glow, small sparks flew like a stary tail after him. "Don’t get me wrong, it’s not, that I wouldn’t understand."

"Well… yeah." Chloe’s eyes blankly followed the trajectory of the furry little comet. "Somehow, I did. Maybe, I managed to make him feel guilty," she sighed. "But, you know, he has such a big heart." Her shoulders slumped slightly, as she watched Amenadiel shooting up from the couch, to avoid a collision with his angry brother. "I just couldn't understand, why he obviously didn't give a damn about these animals."

"Lucifer is a divine being. Against them,"Linda pointed towards the angel, who now rushed accros the house, closely followed by an absolutely dangerous looking diabolical flying squirrel, "we humans are merely inferior creatures. Animals are probably one more step below that."

"But, Amenadiel doesn't think so, does he?" Lucifer's brother spurted past them and Chloe tried to peck the squirrel straight out of the air to help him, but to no avail. The angel ran on, panting hard and turned toward the stairs, taking two steps at a time. Still right behind him, a sparkling, furry flying object.

"No, he doesn’t." Linda patted her arm comfortingly. "But Amenadiel hadn’t been the one to be condemned, who suffered a traumatic rejection by his family and had to rule hell for eons." A loud rumbling and rattling, made them both look up to the ceiling. "Even so, he had been very arrogant for a pretty long time, if you remember. Both had only be able to connect with humanity, because they spent severeal years amongst us. And, as in Lucifer's case, because he did get very fond of a specific human being." She grinned at Chloe suggestively. "The ongoing direct contact with us has finally revealed new perspectives to them. They discovered, that we maybe aren’t that different from them." She twisted her face. "If you ignore the supernatural powers. And the immortality. And the height."

"So, are animals simply not relevant to Lucifer?" Chloe turned towards the stairs, as Amenadiel was just sprinting down again, waving his arms wildly. The devilish squirrel clinged to his neck.

"He has probably not seen any need to interact with them in any way, so far. He was clearly more interested in other things." The Therapist's head jerked down, as the tall runaway angel unexpectedly stumbled over a carpet fold, lost his balance and strucked down lengthways. Exhausted, he kept laying there. Lucifer squeaked in utterly triumph and jumped up and down on his back, like a rubber ball. "Give him time," said Linda. "I presume, he learns the concept of how to really treat animals, just right now."

"Well. You can say so" Chloe answered and approached the fallen Amenadiel. Lucifer welcomed her with his chest puffed out and as she stopped right before his prey, he stretched out his tiny arms to her immediately. His fur now as black as before. Grinning, she picked him up and hugged him close. "As incredibly cute he is," he cackled loudly in her arms, "I would like him to be… taller… again, anyway. And I would prefer him with less hair." She gently stroked over his soft fur and he happily closed his eyes. "If he did this to himself, how do we help him to get back to normality?" Implorlingly, she looked at Linda.

"That's a very good question," mused the Therapist and hurried over to Amenadiel's side, who was just trying to get back up on his feet. Courteous , she reached out a hand.

"What's a good question," groaned the angel, while he accepted Linda’s help, grateful. Several bloody scratches adorned his face and she sympathetically fished for a handkerchief to dab the heroic testimony of his battle.

"How we can help Lucifer transform back to his former self."

"I'm not sure that's even possible," Amenadiel groaned softly, before continuing. "With all due respect, Linda, but I don't think Luci did this to himself."

The Therapist stopped her swab and glared at him angrily. "Do I have to remind you, that this theory was originally yours and we witnessed it’s validity often enough," she accused him.

He raised his hands in a peace-offering manner. "I admit, it’s actually true, that we are able to self-determine a lot. But _this_?" He shook his head and then looked at Chloe, who rocked a very sleepy Lucifer in her arms. "There are limits. Even for us."

"But you don’t know it for sure, do you?" Linda countered.

"Unfortunately not, no." He plucked a piece of fur from his sleeve. "But I will try my very best to figure out, how to help this moronic-," the Therapist threw him an angry look and he cleared his throat, before he continued, "... my brother. I presume, a trip to the Silver City is at stake."

"I would be very glad, if you’ll try to find some answers," Chloe nodded hopefully. "Thank you so much," she added and her eyes involuntarily filled with tears. The angel smiled at her encouragingly and then, he spread his mighty wings .

In the middle of her living room.

_Clash._

Three frames and most of the ornaments on her Christmas tree had just forfeited their fragile lives.

" _Oop_ s," stated the elephant in the glasshouse, but Chloe waved it off. There were much more important things right now, than broken furniture, which she could replace easily.

Amenadiel gave her a quick nod and... in blink he was gone.

"Come on, Sweetie," said Linda, clapping her hands. "Let's clear up this mess."

The Detective sighed again.

She really hoped, that they could eliminate more, than the chaos in her apartment, as soon as possible.

*****

A strange sound woke Chloe from her sleep. Still tired, she blinked a few times, before she lazily rolled around, looking at the window, where a black squirrel stood on his hind legs and scratched on the pane with both paws.

_Oh!_

She almost had forgotten, what happened last night.

Lucifer was still a squirrel.

The loving smack, she'd put on his cute little head before turning off the light, had obviously been useless. The severeal hours, she did spent searching the web had reveald nothing more than the always same patterns, that led to fairy tales and the kiss of true love. After all, she had just been too tired to carry on her investigations any longer and since Amenadiel hadn't come back, she had simply tried to plant a hearty kiss between the fluffy ears of her devilish squirrel, which had curled up in the crook of her arm, where he fell asleep a way before she did.

Unfortunately, she hadn’t been successful.

Lucifer made a loud, clicking sound and continued to scratch the glass, as if possessed.

"What is it, Babe," she asked, voice still hoarse from sleep.

Of course he didn't answer, how could he? Groaning, she rolled out of the bed and padded over to the window. Her furry boyfriend looked at her expectantly and with pure relief.

"What the… " She couldn't believe her own eyes.

At least ten gray squirrels sat on the branches of the fig tree, which towered in front of her apartment and stared at them with clear hunger in their eyes. Each of them waved their tails tempestuously. Chloe’s gaze dropped to Lucifer, who had began to pace on her windowsill, in a clear posturing manner.

"Lucifer," she hissed at him, but he ignored her angry tone and waved his tail back and forth, impressing his obviously female fans out there, which collectively burst out in rapture.

_No way._

She reached out and pulled the blinds down in a sudden. He protested with an outraged snarl.

"Don’t," she threatened him and raised an index finger. "Monogamy. Do you remember?"

His whiskers vibrated rebelliously.

"Lucifer, I swear, if you’ll try to… to fornicate… with one of these… squirrel women, then-"

He darted on her arm like a flash and quickly, he ran up to her shoulder. His following, slightly violent jolt from his shiny black nose took her by surprise and when he licked her cheek, she giggled. He cooed happily.

"Fine, it's all right, I know you like to flirt." She tickled his little belly. "You poor, poor squirrel, all the Ladies just fall for you, don’t they?" He licked her face again and she shivered. " _Uh_... okay, stop it, before it gets creepy. Come on, let’s freshen up a bit and then, we’ll go downstairs. Time to add a nuts-refill."

Lucifer stayed on her shoulder, as she brushed her teeth. Only, when she bent over to wash her face, he jumped on the low dresser with the towels and kept watching her with continuing interest. Chloe brushed her hair, tied it up in a straight ponytail and then slipped out of her comfortable pyjamas. She threw her nightwear into the laundry basket and stalked back to the bedroom, naked, to get dressed. Searching for some underwear, she rummaged through her drawer and finally, she pulled out cotton panties, along with a fitting bra. A seductive smile spread on her face, as she thought about the few pieces of sexy-looking lingerie, which she had bought… especially… for… Lucifer… 

Her thoughts stutterd to a halt.

She actually was naked.

In her bedroom.

With Lucifer.

Alarmed, she turned.

Her devil in furry disguise, visiually stood to attention on all fours, right in the middle of her bed, staring at her with wide-open, glowing red eyes. His mouth had fell open, it literally hung down to the sheets. Very slowly, a strand of drool loosend from his tongue and dripped onto his paws.

She closed her eyes briefly.

How could she forget, that this cute animal was actually... well... _Lucifer_? The same Lucifer, who had been waiting patiently for her to overcome her insecurities for weeks now. So they could finally...

In a flash, she whirled around, ran back to the bathroom and slammed the door behind her. Her heart was pounding furioulsy. She just needed a few minutes on her own. To collect herself. To pull herself together again.

Her legs gave away.

Suddenly, it was too much. All of it.

Only five more minutes.

To think it through.

She tried to ignore the raging squirrel in the other room, although his ear-piercing whining, clicking and cackling was hard to miss.

But she needed some time.

To recharge her batteries.

To take a breath.

Lucifer scratched the door, running wild.

Five more minutes.

A tentative paw pushed into the narrow gap, between the floor and the bathroom door.

Chloe's eyes widened.

A second paw followed, as did the tip of a tiny black nose. And whiskers. Which trembled dangerously.

_Okay._

That was pretty cute.

She had to grin.

Carefully, she opened the door, before he would try to squeeze his whole head under the door and got stuck.

Lucifer backed away and his eyes flickered up and down on her still naked figure. Involuntarily, he started wagging his tail and he paced back and forth again, like he did in front of his would-be-squirrel-harem. His whiskers vibrated.

She shook her head and giggled, it was obvious, that she should get dressed. Immediately.

The moment, she grabbed a pair of jeans from the closet, she noticed how Lucifer, who hadn’t left her side, suddenly pricked up his ears. From one second to the next, he spurted out of the room like a speedball.

The doorbell started ringing.

Trixie and Dan!

She hurried into her underwear, pants and T-shirt, her thoughts racing. If Trixie would use her own keys, not knowing, that Lucifer-

"Mooommyyyy!!!"

_Crap._

Chloe rushed down the stairs, but it had already been too late. Dan stood in the wide-open entrance, holding back a crying Trixie, who tried to free herself from his grip. "Mommy, Lucifer ran out the door," she howled, absolutely heartbroken.

_That idiot._

"Stay, monkey, you will never run out on the street, no matter what happens!" she called, as she sprinted past them. "I'll get him!"

She chased his possible tracks, starting with the small yard in front of her bedroom. Her target was the fig tree and really, at the very moment, she came close, a black bushy tail disappeared in the leaves above her. She slid to a halt.

"Lucifer," she yelled up. "What did I tell you about infidelity? If you’ll lay a single paw on these females, I maroon you and I won’t think twice! I am not joking!"

An elderly woman walked past the street and threw her a very strange look.

Chloe cleared her throat, then nodded to her. "Tomcat," she explained. The woman's eyebrows shot to dizzying heights.

"Lucifer," the Detective turned back to the tree. "Come down. Asap!"

Rustling and cackling were the only answers she got, before the leaves started flattering, revealing severeal gray squirrels, which, one after the other, jumped to the next tree. They were followed by a black one, who jumped less skillfull than the others and therefore, immediately spread its little wings, to use them shamelessly to its own advantage. It whirled elegantly around its enthusiastic, fangirling supporters, who kept running over broad branches, chattering loudly .

Chloe, on the ground, jogged after them.

"Stop, Lucifer," she gasped, but he didn't think of listening to her, he clearly followed his instincts.

 _Oh_ , someone got himself in bad troubles.

She would give him an earful, the minute she could get a grip on this furry-

Her heart almost stopped, when the squirrels blindly crossed the road, causing a car and two cyclists to brake hard. Tires squeaked. Lucifer, who had previously landed on the curbstone, stayed behind, hesitantly. He turned his head back to her and watched, as she caught up to him, breathing heavily.

_Thank God._

"Good boy, stay!" she shouted and sped up, to bring him back to safety as soon as possible.

Only a few steps separated them from each other now, but before she finally managed to reach him, one of the two cyclists suddenly jumped of his bike, clearly furious. He approached the black squirrel quicker than she could. Lucifer didn't notice him at all, because he was still looking back to Chloe. She tried to warn him, so that he-

Too late.

The man had reached Lucifer, took a swing and gave him a horrible brutal kick with his foot.

"Nooooo!!!" she yelled with all her strength .

Lucifer gave an ear-shattering squeak, as he flew through the air and struck down on the hard asphalt, several meters away.

The biker noticed her running towards him like a fury and fled.

_Son of a bitch!_

Lucifer whistled quietly, when she reached him. Bright blood oozed from his mouth and ears. His nose and paws twitched uncontrollably.

_Oh, no no no!_

Tears sprang to her eyes, as she sank to the floor next to him. Her fingers hovered over his small body. She didn't know if or where to touch him, she didn’t want to hurt him any further. A helpless sob escaped her lips and she almost overheard the silent flutter of wings.

Amenadiel knelt beside her. "Chloe, I’ll get this. I'll take him with me. Away from you. He will heal, I promise." Comforting, the angel put a hand on her shoulder.

She nodded.

She couldn't utter a single word. Her throat was too tight.

Amenadiel gathered the broken body of the squirrel with gentle fingers, looked briefly back to Chloe, stretched his wings and... they were gone.

Tears spilled down her face.

It couldn’t be too late.

Please, God, don’t let it be too late.

*****

Amenadiel watched his sleeping brother. Several hours had passed since he had carefully placed his injured body on the silk sheet of his own bed. In order not to feel too useless, he had grabbed a towel and used it, to dab the blood from his fur, before preparing for a long wait.

Slowly, he swayed the golden whiskey in his glass.

No matter how often he had thought it threw, but he was still deeply disturbed about his amazing ability to punish himself in almost unimaginable kind of ways. His powers went far beyond of all the other angels and he wasn't the first to wonder, where Lucifer's path would lead him in the future.

A quiet noise pulled him from his thoughts.

"There you are again. Everything all right?" he muttered mildly.

"Bloody hell," came a muffled respond.

"Happy, that you aren’t a rodent anylonger?" Amenadiel just couldn't hide his grin.

Lucifer sat up slowly and ran his hands over his bare torso. "It's over." A loud gasp followed. "Ha! I am my diabolical self again."

"Yes you are, indeed," replied the angel, downing his whiskey in one go. He got up and approached the bed. "How do you feel?" he asked curious.

"Normal, I guess." Lucifer shrugged and gave himself a once over. He moved an arm, raised a foot, spread his long fingers and... wiggled his hips.

"My eyes," huffed Amenadiel. "You really could have spared me that sight."

"You asked," Lucifer replied and swung his legs off the bed. "What actually happened?" He asked uncertainly. "I don't remember much..."

"Obviously, you were on the loose, brainlessly chasing after the most willingly objects of your desire." Lucifer made a startled noise and Amenadiel raised a hand soothingly. "Let me finish. At the last moment you stopped your silly behavior. Unfortunately, just right in front of the foot of a very angry biker. "

Lucifer jumped to his feet. "This moron kicked me," he shouted. His eyes flashed red.

"Yes, he did. Very brutal even so."

"How dare he. This sod," his brother raged and started pacing up and down. Amenadiel could only agree, but didn’t interrupt him. "These squirrels just followed their instincts, they don't know the rules of mankind. Should they have looked to the right and the left, before running across the street! Preposterous! This filthy imbecile! What, if he had kicked one of this other squirrels? Noone should be treated like that! These poor, helpless, tiny creatures deserve better, they-" Lucifer broke off and blinked in confusion.

Amenadiel smiled at him. " _Ah,_ " he murmured, "here comes the lesson of the day. It's almost a real Christmas miracle."

His brother wiped his hair in an agitated gesture, before dropping back onto the bed. "That’s what it seems, _hm_?" His voice was thin.

The angel looked at him proudly. Lucifer was remarkable, extraordinary, but unfortunately he wasn’t even aware of it. Out of a sudden overwhelming emotion, he stepped up to him and embraced him with strong arms. He must have caught him in a very vulnerable moment, because instead of backing away, his brother leaned against him for a brief second. Amenadiel couldn’t help the tears, that came along with this unexpected hug, but they both knew how it would end, if he gave into crying his heart out. So, he ended the intimate moment and cleared his throat.

"Oookay. I should inform Chloe. She actually asked about your condition for every few minutes and- "

"No." Lucifer grabbed his sleeve. "I just want to… what time is it?"

"It's already Christmas Eve, if you wanted to know that."

"Yes, yes... but is it too late, to-"

"It's nearly eight o’clock."

"Very well," Lucifer breathed in relief, before getting up on shaky legs and heading for the bathroom. "Thank you… _brother_ ," Amenadiel heard him mutter, then he was already through the door.

"Anytime, _brother_ ," he replied just as quietly.

*****

Chloe tugged at her fingers.

Restless and nervous, she shifted on her couch. She just couldn't concentrate on the movie she decided to watch, until Amenadiel would finally inform her, whether or not, Lucifer had woken up again. When was the last time she had texted him? She was quiet sure, it had already been an hour ago. Of course, she didn't want to tingle his nerves and she already knew, that her devilish squirrel healed properly.

But... _anyway_.

A soft knock almost caused her a heart attack. Her eyes flew to the door of Trixie's room and then back to her smartphone. It was almost ten. Who could that be? On Christmas Eve?

Her body suddenly on alert, she cautiously approached the frontdoor.

Why didn’t she have her gun? It would be-

"Detective," came a loud voice from outside. She held her breath. "Hello?" Lucifer sounded slightly contritely. "I'm not a speaking squirrel, if you are actually wondering-"

He broke off, as Chloe flung the door open and studied him from head to toe. In silence.

" _Uh_... I was afraid..." he raised an eyebrow. "Detective, I assure you, that these squirrels meant nothing to me. I must have gotten into some kind of hormonal rush, otherwise-"

She stood on her tiptoes and captured his lips with hers.

" _Mmh._ " He was very pleased with this unexpected development and wrapped both arms tightly around her body, to pull her close. He deepend the kiss, his hands roaming over her sides and trailling up to the back of her head. A low moan escaped him and Chloe broke the kiss, before things got too heated. He was far from ready to let her go and peppered her face with small kisses.

"Lucifer," she whispered, putting some space between their bodies. "Why... how did you... how could you..." She was almost embarrassed by her silly stammering.

"Never shall you ask me, Detective," he breathed and winked at her. She rolled her eyes, which made him laugh. "Very well… but I don’t know exactly what to tell you, Love. In one moment, I just had been a really adorable squirrel and in the other, I was me again. Definitely even more adorable." He grinned. "Anyway, I must admit, all of it could be related to a lesson, that I had to learn."

" _Oh_ Lucifer," she said with a sigh. "Do I have to be afraid, that you turn into who knows what, every time you feel guilty about something, or as soon as you subconsciously think you deserve a lecture?"

"Well, I hope that's not the case." He bowed his head. "Following the advice of my brother, I will continue my therapy with Linda, maybe this could help somehow. You know." He looked at her with a smile. "Self-knowledge. Self-reflection. Useful skills for any creature with a brain."

She beamed at him. "That would be great!"

"I bet it will be right that, indeed." He looked past her. "May I come in?"

"Of course, sorry!" Chloe hastily took a step to the side. To her surprise, he didn't move immediately, but stooped to pick up a basket, that stood next to his feet and which she hadn't even noticed, until now. He quickly walked inside and placed it in the middle of her kitchen island.

"Wine and cheese?" she asked curiously. It wouldn’t be the first time, that he brought this ' _light snack’_ what he called it, as a small present for her.

"Not quite," he grinned, opening the left flap of the basket .

A small, furry, black head with bright-light green eyes, emerged from the shallows of the braided carrier and meowed softly.

"Lucifer," she whispered, suddenly overwhelmed. With both hands she grabbed the fluffy content. "Is this... is this the kitten, we-"

"Indeed."

"But, Lucifer, I don't know… a cat..." A small pink tongue darted forward and licked her fingers. Chloe’s heart melted. She glared at Lucifer as she gently hugged the small bundle of fur, that still looked terribly malnourished. "Is she well, I mean healthy?"

"First, Detective it’s a _he_ not a _she_ ", his grin grew wide, "and secondly, indeed, he is healthy. Just a little lean. But I have made arrangements. In the car, there is a box full of food for baby cats, a cat sleeping basket and a scratching post. Obviously, I also had to buy a litter box and some granular, which shall be able to absorbe everything, even a flood sent by my Father, I presume." His eyebrow rose. "The nice lady from the shelter instructed me very clearly." He looked at her, feeling very proud about himself.

" _Oh_ , Lucifer," she breathed with tears in her eyes. With one hand she pressed the cat to her chest and with the other, she grabbed the collar of his shirt. She pulled him down to give him another kiss, this time willing, to let it go a bit further.

A second, before their lips touched, a ear-piercing yell interrupted Chloe’s intentions.

"Is that a caaaat!?"

The two grinned at each other.

"It is, monkey. And - you actually can name him Lucifer, if you like."

"Bloody hell, Detective."

"Merry Christmas, Lucifer", she threw him a kiss.

"I would rather call it a _Furry Christmas_ ", he grinned and gathered her in his arms.

*****The end*****


End file.
